Lara Scobie

From the moment a fresh bag of clay is opened my imagination is triggered by the sensory pleasure of its smooth texture and the anticipatory thrill of potential. Working with clay is as exciting and terrifying as a roller coaster ride, presenting as many challenges as rewards. To understand this soft malleable material — really just a lump of wet earth — takes time, but with considered handling and measured judgement it can be manipulated into dynamic and expressive form. This transformation goes through many stages as the clay is first shaped, then hardened and dried, before being finally and inexorably altered by the alchemy of firing to a new ceramic form — hard, durable and permanent.